Rhubarb Sour Cream Cake

I found this recipe at the Australian food blog Insanity Theory, and adapted it for North American kitchen measures and ingredients (if you’re looking for grams and/or have lots of self-rising flour to use up, head on over there for her original).

This cake is wonderfully spiced with cinnamon, which goes really well with the rhubarb. I loved the bit of almond on top, but I think it would be nice without, as well. This is a great cake to use up frozen rhubarb or an excellent use for a fresh crop, if yours is ready now.

Cook’s Notes for Rhubarb Sour Cream Cake

This cake has good bit of sugar in it and on top of it, but believe it or not, the finished cake will not make your teeth ring. I’d call it just pleasantly sweet. I think it’s the combination with the tart rhubarb that stops it from going over the top. That said, you may not need to use all of the topping sugar, if you’d like to cut back a bit. I used about 3/4 of it. I saved the rest for cinnamon sugar toast topping.

Rhubarb Sour Cream Cake

Prep Time:10minutes

Cook Time:1hour10minutes

Total Time:1hour20minutes

Servings:10

Calories:417kcal

Author:Jennifer

This is a lovely, moist cake, lightly spiced with cinnamon. You can make this lovely cake with either fresh or frozen rhubarb. The almonds on top are optional.

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Ingredients

Cake:

2 1/3cupsall purpose flour

3tspbaking powder

3/4tspsalt

1 1/2tspcinnamon

1/4tspnutmeg

4Tbspunsalted butter

1 1/2cupsbrown sugarI used light brown sugar, packed

1egg

3tspvanillaI used vanilla bean paste in same amount

1cupsour creamI used full fat

4cupsrhubarbfresh or frozen. I used frozen, cut into 1/2-inch chunks

Topping:

1cupwhite sugar

1/2tspcinnamon

1/3cupflaked almondsoptional

Instructions

Preheat oven to 355° F. and grease a 10-inch cake or springform pan. Line the bottom with a round of parchment (just to make your life easier, as this is a moist cake and it will just come out of the pan more easily). Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar until it is well combined and resembles wet sand. Add the egg and beat until the mixture is well combined and there are no lumps of brown sugar. Add the sour cream and vanilla and beat to combine.

With mixer on low, add the flour mixture and mix just until combined. Fold in rhubarb. Spoon mixture into prepared pan.

Sprinkle top of the cake with flaked almonds, if using. Combine the Topping sugar (1 cup) and the 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Sprinkle liberally over the top of the cake. You may not use all of it (it is a lot!). I used about 3/4 of it. Any leftovers are great on toast or for other baking.

I wanted to make something with rhubarb last week and I couldn’t find frozen rhubarb anywhere! I remember seeing once in the grocery store but I can’t find it anymore. When it finally comes in season I’m definitely stocking up, freezing it and making this cake….and the recipe I was originally going to make!

Hi Jennifer – this cake looks fab! Rhubarb reminds me of my childhood when it used to grow in my Mum’s garden. Me and my friend would pick it straight out of the ground and were given a bowl of sugar to dip it in – I cannot believe nowadays that we were ever given sugar with our fruit! Anyway your cake proves that there is a more grown up way to enjoy the sweetness of the rhubarb and sugar combo! Thanks for this recipe – I love your blog, it is one of my favourites.

This looks amazing! I’ve never been one to enjoy rhubarb, ever since I had one bite of a really bad rhubarb pie. However, since then I’ve grown to enjoy it. I recently posted a saucy rhubarb dessert. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I’ll have to convert it to gluten free!

Would you have any tips for making this and then shipping it? I’d like to make it for Father’s Day and then perhaps pack it in a tin and mail it overnight? 2-day? My father loves loves loves rhubarb so any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Hmmm. It does keep well, so should be good to ship on that front, though I’d do overnight, if it’s affordable – just so it’s as fresh as possible. It’s also a fairly sturdy cake, so I think if you let it cool and then wrap well, it should be good. I’d do a layer of plastic wrap around it and then several layers of foil wrap. You could also ship it in the springform pan, for the ultimate in protection. Maybe the pan is a Father’s Day gift, too :)

I have just made this fabulous cake to take to work and share with colleagues mid way through a flu vaccination clinic. It went down a treat. Next time, and there will be a next time, I may use coriander as the spice as I think it may go rather well with the rhubarb and the flaked almonds.

I made this last night. It was yummy. It looked done at 1 hour baking time. But after I let it sit… the middle started sagging. It tasted great except the middle wasn’t quite done. Either I’ll bake it for the 70 minutes next time or I’ll use a tube pan. The edges were perfect. Thanks for the recipe. I’ll let you know how it turns out next time. Blessings!

I hate when that happens, Christine, but glad the outside was good. Sometimes I pop a sheet of aluminum foil over the top loosely, to stop the cake from browning too much, while still letting the cake cook a little longer.

This is so up my alley. I love how rustic it looks which makes imperfections look perfect! Rhubarb has such a surprising taste as a dessert and adding in cinnamon sounds divine. Does it pair nicely with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped topping?